Early Spring ... and the garden is dry, dry, dry! Typical of our dry season, there's been no rain for over four months during our Winter and early Spring, and my passion for gardening has waned a little. In addition to the lack of rain, the wind has also whipped up considerably in the last few weeks and the potted plants that provide much of the colour here at this time of year, are drying out faster than usual.
Not only am I spending a fair amount of time trying to water the poor thirsty plants, but the hungry, hungry wallabies have managed to get into my bad books this year by decimating so many plants they've never touched before. I'm almost afraid to get up in the morning and wander around the place as I inevitably find something else that's been nibbled down to a tiny stump.
Luckily there are still some plants they haven't yet acquired a taste for, so some colour remains in a few corners. So I do have some blooms to share on this mid-Spring GBBD post.
One of my favourite combinations at the moment is this gorgeous Vanilla Marigold and the Bumble Bee Petunia. They do make a great looking pair.
There's always fabulous foliage plants to appreciate, and I do so love the splashes of white that just seem to lift various corners of the garden. There's the little round ball shaped flowers of the Ozothamnus diosmifolius, the striking white flowers of the unknown variety of Begonia, the startling white of the Pentas and the happy faces of the white Gazanias.
Then there's the bright vibrant colours of the annuals and perennials like Impatiens walleriana, Rudbeckia, Nasturtium, Torenia, Russelia, Verbena, Pelargonium and Impatiens hawkeri.
One thing that really does lift the spirits of this dry season gardener is the presence of so many beautiful birds with their amazing songs. They surround me every day as I wander through the garden and simply make my day.
I've also spotted some fantastic creatures, like this fabulous looking North Queensland Day Moth ...
... and this Ladybird, which is not a common sight around here!
Oh ... and then at the end of another day of being disheartened by the discovery of yet another nibbled plant or seeing plants in obvious distress because they're craving a decent drink, I get to see stunning sunset skies like this ....
... and this!
For fabulous posts on this Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, make sure you go and visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens
All of your combinations are great. The wallabies amaze me and love the upside down bird!! I have a new blog, I hope my comment will post and when you click on my name it will take you there. This has been very challenging for me... :) Darla
ReplyDeleteHi Bernie, I think your container pots are looking fantastic and I agree, the vanilla marigold and bumble bee petunia are quite smashing together! Great sunset shots. Cheers, Jenni
ReplyDeletealoha,
ReplyDeletebeautiful and colorful...i love your first photo with the petunias..they are really striking, we never have interesting petunias like that in hawaii
thanks for sharing your garden today
Beautiful shots...stunning! I can't imagine what it would be like to see a wallaby in my garden!!!
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful everything looks in your garden. What is the plant in the fifth photo, bottom right? The birds are beautiful too ...
ReplyDeleteHappy GBBD :)
I'm up in Cairns for a few days so missed posting for GGBD, but I'm trying to catch up with everyone else's gardens instead. I've seen the damage wallabies can do to a garden but we always forgive them don't we. Hope they find something else to eat other than your flowers.
ReplyDeleteYour early spring garden is a treat. As an aficionado of lepidoptera, I do love that moth picture!
ReplyDeleteNaughty naughty wallaby's eating the head gardener’s plants is not the way to get into her good book. It must be so frustrating, as if the dry weather is not damaging enough. You really do have a battle on your hands. The flowers they have left alone are wonderful I love the vanilla marigold and petunia combo, stunning together.
ReplyDeleteThe photo of the upside down parakeet is lovely, one of my favorite photos.
I spent the afternoon pulling out plants that have been blown to shreds by the winds and battered by the rain.
Have a good weekend. We are away for the weekend hope it doesn't rain.
Sue
I love the way you have displayed your flowers and "friends" in your garden. I also love the birds that thrive in our gardens.... wonderful post!
ReplyDeleteDarla, well it worked. I got to you new blog and left a comment on your GBBD post. The upside down bird, the Scaly-Breasted Lorikeet is one of the regular visitors here at the moment.
ReplyDeleteHi Jenni, I'm glad you like the Marigold and Bumble Bee Petunia combo too. I really love the pale Marigold with the dark Petunias.
Noel, thanks for dropping by. That Bumblebee Petunia didn't sell very well here. Apparently not enough people have our good taste in striking blooms!!
Scott, yes we get wallabies in our place everyday and I didn't mind in previous years as they usually only nibbled on the grass. This year has been different for some reason and they're not behaving as they should!
Gardeningblog, the plant you asked about is Croton 'Zanzibar' and has the most fabulous foliage colours.
Missy, after rising this morning and finding that some wallaby had started munching on my Plectranthus, which had never happened before, I'm in no mood for forgiveness. Every day they seem to choose a new plant for their breakfast!!
ReplyDeleteDorothy, thanks for popping by and I'm glad you enjoyed the shot of that Day Moth. It is such a lovely thing.
Sue, this head gardener is definitely not happy! I just can't believe that the wallabies are suddenly so very hungry that they need to munch through my plants after all the years they managed to leave them untouched!! Sounds like your garden has been in the wars lately too. I hope there wasn't too much damage. Enjoy your weekend away.
Barbie, it's always great to hear that the photos are appreciated. We do rather take the wildlife for granted around here, but we are so lucky to be able to see such a variety of birds and other animals.
You have such beautiful plants. I would never know it's been so dry there! It's dry here, too - thankfully we don't have wallabies to contend with! lol In addition to your beautiful blooms, I loved the green bird! What a character! And your sunset is breathtaking! Happy GBBD!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you've been having the same weather as us. We've had the hottest, driest summer on record, I've lost track of the number of days about 100 degrees we have had. So I can sympathize with you on the need to water, and of thirsty wildlife moving in. You have way more color and variety of plants than I do though. I love the upside down bird - how cute!
ReplyDeleteWow Bernie, you still have a lot of wonderful blooms. How is that 1st photo called? Its color is really unique, i will ask my friends there to send me some seeds, i hope it will thrive here too. By the way, Australia is the only country i've visited with lots of beautiful birds roaming around the parks, i specially missed the gallahs and the ibis, rainbow lorikeets! But i also miss the word lollies!
ReplyDeleteYour photos today are gorgeous! I also have Vanilla marigolds in my post today...trying to save a few blooms from the predicted frost...
ReplyDeleteOh that is so funny Bernie-the wallabies in your garden. It brought a smile to my face to think of it. So exotic. I wonder if you have raccoons and possums too? I now you have rabbits! Your bird life is so exotic too. We are coming to Australia next year. I hope we see some of the wonderful fauna and flora that you show in your lovely photographs.
ReplyDeleteThere is nothing like wind the lack of rain to kill the gardening spirit. We had rain last night and today. Fall is descending here in the northern hemisphere, where gardening in winding down. The mountains even had a bit of snow. No Thanks. I'll take the rain. I ramble. Your blooms are lovely. I hope you can keep the wallabies at bay. You have such a pretty collections of flowering pots.
ReplyDeleteBernie, your black striped petunias are fantastic! In spite of the wallabies, your garden is so pretty and full of flowers. The moth is quite a rare one.
ReplyDeleteHolleygarden, yes it's dry as a bone around here right now. I purposely don't show most of the garden because it really is not a great sight! Thankfully my potted plants do provide some much needed colour.
ReplyDeleteJayne, while we in the middle of our dry season, the heat hasn't arrived just yet. The Summer is not far off though and it can be just as hard on the garden as the dry season. You certainly deserve a break in your hot temps!
Andrea, that plant is the Bumble Bee Petunia.
Millie, I just love the Vanilla Marigolds, but I'm not really a fan of the yellow ones. I will pop over to see your post very soon.
Lancashire Rose, my hubbie has a right ole giggle when he hears me moan in the morning upon discovering something else nibbled away to nothing! You should see how I've used chairs and pots to try and barricade the courtyard and those wallabies still get in!!!
Ann, the dry at this time of year always leaves me a little depressed because the place just looks awful. The hungry wallabies are not helping either!
Lotusleaf, thanks for dropping by. I have never seen that moth here before, so it's was a real pleasure to capture a few good photos of it.
You have so many flowers blooming in your garden. It's such a contrast to our end of season. I particularly like the photo of the parrot which looks as if it's going to carry out some acrobatic manoevre!
ReplyDeleteDear Bernie,
ReplyDeletesorry, I´m a little late...
I love your post, it was a fun to read it! But the parrot made me laugh! I realized you have so many nice and white flowers in your garden, wow ;-)
Wish you a nice weekend!
Gesine
Bernie, I have to tell you, your blog fascinates me! Where else can I hear someone complaining about winter and eager for spring (as we are seeing the beginnings of autumn), and read about petunias, marigolds, impatiens, and wallabies in the same paragraph! I love the things we share, but I especially appreciate those we don't. That moth is stunning!!!
ReplyDeleteI love the profusion of colour in the pots, and the birds and bugs, especially the upside down parrot, and the sunset.
ReplyDeleteHappy GBBD Bernie! Love your blooms but I like your upside down bird most.
ReplyDeleteBernie, I have enjoyed bouncing around your blog this evening. It finally occurred to me that you don't have cold weather at all, right? I'm in sub-tropical Florida, and we get night-time temps down to 20F several times from December through February, too cold for your tropical lovelies to live in the ground in my garden. I love your courtyard and all of your bright potted plants, many we grow here, too, until the freezes hit. I sympathize and empathize with you about your cyclone experience. Though we're inland, in September, 2004 we had two hurricanes come through (one stalling) that took down a dozen huge oak and pine trees on our acre property, but no house damage just a crushed pool screen. The first one was exhausting enough, but the second one 3 weeks later just knocked the slats out from under me. We downsized about 8 months later to our present home. In recent times I've said if I had to leave the US, I'd choose Australia, a country filled with friendly, English-speaking folks. So I'm looking forward to getting smarter about Australian gardening by watching your lovely blog.
ReplyDeleteThe parrot is a riot! LOL.
ReplyDeleteThese are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteBasil Flowers
Bernie, the parrot hanging upside down is so cute, that's a sight I'll never see around here. I think it's going to be a fun winter in blogland because you're just starting out with Spring as we're slipping into Winter. This way I'll get to come over and visit your blog when the snowbanks get to be too much for me and it will be like a virtual vacation.
ReplyDeleteYour photos are getting more and more fabulous...the parrot, the ladybird...great!I love the new look of your header too.
ReplyDeleteRosie
Great Shots! I'm so glad we don't have any parrots around here... That picture sent shivers down my spine (don't ask).
ReplyDeleteEnjoy every day with all this beauty
ReplyDeleteI love your sky shots, the flowers are beautiful too.
ReplyDeleteMy share flowers, have a nice week ahead.
Wow! All of your collages are fabulous! I am in awe of that moth...so beautiful! Thanks for stopping by my blog to leave a comment.
ReplyDeleteI am following you now!
ReplyDeleteWow! I came to your blog after you checked out my Windows of Venice! What incredible pictures/collages!
ReplyDeleteJeg kom lige forbi din blog.
ReplyDeleteGode billeder.
Hvor har du mange smukke blomster.
Tak for rundvisningen.
Your garden is full of beautiful flowers! Cute visitors too!
ReplyDeletewonderful shots as usual, especially the clear closeups of the birds. And the wide pink sunset is so lovely. Good luck with the pot watering.
ReplyDeleteDear Bernie, Your garden is full of color and the promise of spring! Beautiful posting. I especially love the fantastic moth. P. x
ReplyDeleteHi Bernie, nice to see your Queensland blooms and critters. your birds sure are more colorful than most of our "lbb" - little brown birds - here in the California chaparral! Your passion may be waning temporarily but your garden doesn't look like it is!
ReplyDeleteBernie,always fascinating to visit your site and compare our back to front worlds. Your garden shots are magnificent and I love the images of your sunsets.
ReplyDeleteGode billeder.
ReplyDeleteHvor har du mange smukke blomster.
Tak for rundvisningen.
Garden looking stunning despite the wallabies.
ReplyDelete